Ocean's Eight (2018)

Directed by Gary Ross

Screenplay written by Olivia Milch and Gary Ross

Starring Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway and Mindy Kaling 

An all female spin-off of the original Ocean's heist movies-- how could it get better than that? I loved the idea of this considering how much I enjoyed the original Ocean's Eleven. The a-listers they casted drew me in initially, the story of a gang of bad-ass women pulling off a huge heist starring eight of your favorite actresses? Sign me up!

Debby Ocean (Sandra Bullock), the younger sister of Danny Ocean, is freshly out of prison and has the idea for a diabolically brilliant heist that is five years in the making. She is going to convince Cartier to lend a $150 million diamond necklace to a hot-headed actress, Daphne Kluger (Anne Hathaway) for the annual Met Gala, where she will steal the necklace off the actresses neck. To pull this off, she recruits the help of a highly skilled team of women (including Cate Blanchett, Mindy Kaling, Sarah Paulson, Awkwafina, Rihanna and Helena Bonham Carter). 

Aside from one big surprise towards the end of the movie, the heist seems to predictable and easy. The idea of stealing an ancient necklace off the neck of a vein actress at the Met Gala is very original and seems like it is going to be a challenge, but the women never really run into any problems. Maybe thats the point? They're so devilishly good at pulling off heists. It just doesn't lead to any real plot twists or major dilemmas, which is what Ocean's Eight was lacking. 

The performances weren't all shining considering the amazing line-up of women they got to fill the eight slots. I honestly forgot to even add Rihanna's name above at first, if that is a testament to the acting performances. I love Sandra Bullock, but her role was a little flat in this movie. She didn't have much going for her as far as emotions go. Most of the women were just heist movie stereotypes- the gadget girl, the mastermind, the sly and sneaky one. Helena Bonham Carter was my favorite performance of the bunch, as the wacky fashion designer. She often was stealing the show when she was on screen. Hathaway did a good job playing a vein actress which makes you ask if that's just her actual personality? Let's hope not. 

Despite the lack of nail-biting tension from the heist, it does keep you interested and wanting to find out how it gets pulled off. The film does have enough humor as well, to keep you entertained throughout. While it may have not lived up to it's predecessors, it did prove for a worthy 1 hour and 50 minutes of my time. 

7/10

Interstellar (2014)

Directed by Christopher Nolan

Written by Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan 

Starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain and Michael Caine

    Interstellar is a sci-fi masterpiece of epic proportions. It is a Nolan masterpiece. By 2014, the release date of this movie, we are well aware that Christopher Nolan is not a director to shy away from a challenge-with the mind-bending Inception or his re-invented Batman movies. This big-budget science fiction journey is one everyone needs to take, because while it may be a nearly three hour long commitment with some confusing space travel mumbo-jumbo, its more simply a tale of love and sacrifice. This movie is the definition of a film you see in IMAX on the big screen. The visual effects are as astounding as the breathtaking story. 

     The story opens in an un-specified year in the distant future. The world as we know it, has fallen victim to a famine caused by overpopulation and blight that is killing crops and causing massive dust storms. Nitrogen is reaching a new high in the atmosphere, and the new fear is the human race will die from suffocation and famine. The movie presumably on purpose, does not specify a year that this is all taking place- I'm guessing its somewhere around 2040. Former NASA engineer and pilot, Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) owns and operates a huge corn farm with his family: son Tom, father-in-law, Donald (John Lithgow) and his daughter, Murph (Mackenzie Foy). Cooper and his daughter are lead by almost supernatural means to chain-link fence surrounding a super secret building. At this location is Coop's old employer- NASA, led by Professor Brand (Michael Caine). NASA has been working at this secret location for years, trying to figure out a way to save the human race. They present Coop with two plans they have formulated; the first being contracting a massive interstellar aircraft that could transport as many humans into outer space as possible. The second plan is to re-populate a new planet with frozen embryos- however this plan involves the current human race on planet earth to fade away, while a new one is created.
     As if all this isn't already swelling your brain, we learn about a wormhole in our galaxy near Saturn. This wormhole was presumably placed there by (alien) entities of extreme intelligence, who are trying to help the human race by giving us this entry to another galaxy. This galaxy through the wormhole holds potentially habitable planets. A decade ago, 12 astronauts were sent into this hole to discover the planets, in hopes of finding one that could support human life. Now, Cooper must pilot a ship that will travel into the wormhole and make the final call to ultimately decide the fate of the humankind. He is joined on this mission by Professor Brand's daughter, Dr. Amelia Brand (Anne Hathaway); scientists Doyle (Wes Bentley); and Romilly (David Gyasi); and the highly advanced robot, TARS. Back on ground, a now adult Murph (now played by Jessica Chastain) is working as Brand's second in charge- also helping to find a way to save mankind.
     The dialogue of this movie may be dense at times with science talk, however it is never impenetrable. Nolan does a great job at working explanations into the script. The first 45 minutes of the movie are used as an introduction to not only the global famine, but the love shared between Murph and Cooper. This was a great stepping stone to the gripping middle half of the movie. The first part  of the movie allows us to see why it was so hard for Coop to leave for this mission, and why Murph still shows resentment over her father leaving after all those years. Once in space, the white knuckle moments begin. Over the course of the nearly three hours, the movie really never bores. Especially in the last 20 minutes, where I don't think my jaw ever left the floor.
     I may have left with a few unanswered questions at the end, but I still feel Nolan did a fine job at portraying this complex story to us in a comprehensible manner. Matthew McConaughey was the perfect fit for the lead role in this. He is the glue that holds everything together in this movie. He is basically the one expected to save the human race. The supporting cast is riddled with big names, but they all fall short considering the monstrous story. The acting is fine- but with the amazing visuals, the excellent score by Hans Zimmer, and the huge lead role from McConaughey- its hard to pay a lot of attention to the supporting acting roles. One of 2014's best movies. This is what the genre science fiction exists for. Everyone needs to see this.

I give Interstellar a...

8/10